Oil prices fall as consumption falls in US

 NEW YORK, March 14, 2012 (AFP) – Oil prices fell on Wednesday, pressured by a stronger dollar, a rise in US crude oil stockpiles and Saudi Arabian assurances that it would replace market shortfalls caused by pressure on Iran.

New York’s main contract, West Texas Intermediate for delivery in April, lost $1.28 to close at $105.43 a barrel.Brent North Sea crude for April shed $1.25 to $124.97 in London trade.A rise in US crude inventories and a fall in US refinery throughput gave a bearish spin to the market.

With unseasonably warm weather continuing across much of the country, the US Department of Energy said in its weekly report that total products supplied to the market over the past four weeks were down 5.4 percent from a year ago.”Inventories were obviously… negative factors today,” said Phil Flynn of PFG Best.

“Comments from Saudi Arabia, saying that they are prepared to replace Iranian crude” also held prices down, he added.

Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said in Kuwait Wednesday that the oil-rich kingdom stands ready to cover any shortfalls of crude supplies in the market.”As I have noted many times before, Saudi Arabia and others remain poised to make good any shortfalls — perceived or real — in crude oil supplies,” he said at the 13th International Energy Forum.

The International Energy Agency said on Wednesday that it expected exports from Iran, OPEC’s second-biggest producer, to fall by about 800,000 barrels per day to one million barrels bpd after the middle of this year, due mainly to sanctions pressure from Europe and the United States over its alleged nuclear weapons program.The IEA meanwhile kept its forecast of demand growth for this year stable at 89.9 million barrels a day.